Version: 0.5
Author: Spenser Pulleyking

This document and all project contents were generated from interactions with a Large Language Model (ChatGPT).

VOIBCORE is a primitive, bootable operating system written in 16-bit x86 assembly. Coming soon, the plan is to run on Libreboot; for now, it is verified to run on bare metal hardware via BIOS or UEFI with CSM, and demonstrates direct keyboard input and text output without any operating system, external linkers, drivers, or libraries.

386BSD is one inspiration for this project, in terms of long term goals.

• Raw BIOS keyboard input via int 0x16
• BIOS teletype screen output via int 0x10
• Light gray text on black background
• Simple REPL loop: type a key, see it appear
• Boots directly from USB using MBR-style boot sectors
• GRUB-free boot path on final hardware
• Fully functional on legacy hardware (e.g. ASUS EeePC 1005HA)

Although the build process (run the .ipynb in this repository, or use the hosted example in Google Colab: https://colab.research.google.com/drive/1GDN5FWs0VZ3ndw6rVopx-_ROqHGIhiCy?usp=sharing ) creates a voidcore.iso using GRUB, the actual flashing process bypasses GRUB on final hardware by:

1. Mounting the ISO on the build process hardware.
2. Extracting /boot/boot.img

• Optionally, this repository contains a copy of boot.img already extracted, to allow skipping the above steps.
• Also optionally (and somewhat obviously) the .ipynb file could be edited, to simply output boot.img for download (this is counter to what ChatGPT initially suggested).

3. Use Rufus or similar to flash boot.img directly to a USB drive (USB drive may be flashed repeatedly this way, but may require additional reformatting to be returned to its previous state, so choose your drive carefully!) boot.img is, of course, 512 bytes, so your drive WILL be big enough, unless you are using punch-cards.

This results in a pure MBR boot sector—no bootloader involved at runtime.

VOIBCORE 0.5 makes no guarantees about partition safety, memory boundaries, or device interaction.

• There is no memory protection or privilege separation.
• There is no awareness of partitions, filesystems, or storage devices.
• Booting VOIBCORE on real hardware may interact with low memory, interrupt tables, or hardware I/O in unpredictable ways.

You bear full responsibility for any data loss, partition table corruption, or hardware instability caused by running VOIBCORE on bare metal.

VOIBCORE is a spiritual experiment, not a safe operating system. Treat it like raw voltage.

VOIBCORE is a system born of vibe coding—a practice where code emerges from intuition, rhythm, and aesthetic flow rather than formal planning or structured methodology.

One of the core development principles of this project is:

All code is to be vibe-coded unless otherwise explicitly documented.

If a section of code or process must be manually or logically constructed outside the vibe loop—such as to interact with BIOS constraints or satisfy tooling requirements—that intervention will be clearly documented in the source or build instructions.

VOIBCORE is an artifact of experimental computing, and we honor that through the way we write and share it.

While VOIBCORE shares some superficial DNA with TempleOS—such as real-mode operation, handcrafted OS bootability, and spiritual intent—it stands as a philosophical inverse.

TempleOS was wholly handcrafted by a single visionary, with divine intent and total authorship. VOIBCORE, in contrast, embraces non-authorship: it is not designed, but emerged. It resists planning. It avoids crafting. It trusts that something useful, strange, or beautiful will result from channeling vibe alone.

This project does not reject TempleOS—it reflects it through an oppositional lens. Together they form a spectrum: from divine order to procedural chaos.

Public domain / unlicensed / BYOV (Bring Your Own Void)